PHILADELPHIA — Depending on what his doctor tells him nine days from now, Andrew Bynum said he could be ready to “ramp it up” in regard to his return to the court.

And he will return at some point. Bynum said he hasn’t once considered the idea of never playing for the Sixers.

The Sixers’ prize offseason acquisition, Bynum is out indefinitely with bilateral bone bruises and weakened cartilage in both knees. He gave an update on his health status Monday, before his team hosted Detroit.

Bynum said the swelling is down in his right knee. That knee, the one initially keeping him off the court, “feels much, much better,” he said. As for the left, which he injured in November while bowling, Bynum said he still experiences pain even while walking. But if everything was on the line?

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“If this was the Finals, and it could be, potentially, me helping this team win, I’m going to play because I think that’s a serious time and you want to be a part of that,” said Bynum, the 25-year-old who’s yet to practice or play with the Sixers. “I don’t think, especially right now, that it’d be a good time to risk anything. Why risk it when you have time to come back and be 100 percent?”

Bynum said he’ll visit his doctor, David Altchek, in New York Dec. 20. He expects to undergo an MRI on each knee at that time.

Sixers general manager Tony DiLeo removed all timetables for Bynum’s return last month. Bynum said he doesn’t feel any pressure from the organization to play while hurt, but it wasn’t always that way. He said “initially” the vibe he got was to get on the court as soon as possible.

That has since subsided, Bynum said, and he’s comfortable waiting this thing out until he feels good and ready to play. Bynum said he’s never once thought about sitting out the entire season, the last on his existing contract. He’s set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer.

“(Returning) is obviously a possibility depending on what my doctor tells me, but I really think I’ll be fine,” Bynum said. “If my left knee gets better and feels like my right knee, I’ll be fine.

“As far as a threshold on the pain, it’s about, I think, protecting and being cautious about my knees. I feel this pain walking around, so I think it’d be kind of silly to kind of start running or do anything basketball (related), because it’s only going to get worse. Until it heals up, until this Germany procedure’s half-life is over, being cautious and taking time and giving it its time to heal (is best).”

For now, Bynum has reduced his conditioning to swimming. That’s it. He said he hasn’t doctored his diet in order to stay fit, though the 7-foot, 285-pounder looks like he’s maintained his game shape.

“Game-wise, I think it’ll be pretty quick, once I’m back. To be in game shape, it’s going to be a week or maybe two at the max to be there. Getting there is going to be the hard part.”

To get to that point, Bynum has to hope that whatever shows up on Altchek’s MRI reports is enough to clear him to play.

The all-star center, who won two titles with the Lakers, was acquired by the Sixers from Los Angeles in a four-team deal Aug. 10. Since then, he hasn’t practiced or played with the team that sent away an all-star and two first-round picks to get Bynum.

In the time that Bynum’s been a spectator of the Sixers, he said feels connected with his teammates — “Off the court we’re great, having fun and stuff,” he said — and he likes what he’s seen on the court, too, especially from Jrue Holiday and Evan Turner.

“Jrue and Evan’s play has been really good,” Bynum said. “Evan is doing more than filling in for (Andre) Iguodala, which is great. And Jrue has just developed into a hell of a player. J-Rich (Jason Richardson) is helping. I want to see more of the young guys, personally — Maalik (Wayns) and Arnett (Moultrie). I think they could really help give us a push.”